Embracing Yourself (a rant, by Maddie)

As children, the iconic question that never seems to disappear (and only becomes asked more frequently as one gets older) is, “what do you want to be when you grow up?”

Thinking back, all the times I remember people asking me these simple ten words, I gave them an off-the-top-of-my-head answer and didn’t give it much more thought. But now I’m sixteen, a senior in high school (yes, I am quite young for my grade), and as the question seems to be the only topic of conversation nowadays, I can’t seem to just keep brushing it off.

What do I want to be? Well, I can easily answer with a stream of professions… a writer, a film maker, a story teller, a fashion designer, a cook, a nutritionist, a physical therapist, a personal trainer, a professional surfer, a beach bum, a professional outdoors woman and the list goes on. But if I had to choose one thing I wanted to become when I grow up, well, that’s where I’m stuck.

I have friends applying to colleges, friends who have known what they want to do since the forth grade… but me? I’m just trying to make it through my final year of high school the best I can.

I want to pose a question to you. When someone is a senior in high school do they really have to know what they want to do for the rest of their life? Because if you ask me, that just seems daunting, the same way thinking of eternity gives me the eebey geebeys. Maybe I’m crazy, but I don’t think I, or any other 16, 17, or 18 year old has to have it all figured out.

I think now’s the time to embrace ourselves and cherish every moment we have with the ones we love. We shouldn’t be spending our time and energy getting stressed out over our next essay, exam or the boy who “supposedly” thinks your hot.

At this time in my life, I have decided to stop playing soccer (because I stopped loving it), to work hard to complete my associates degree by the time I graduate from high school, to spend my time working and making money so I don’t have to rely soley on my parents for my wants and needs, and to strengthen old bonds and make time to create new connections with the right people.

I know that I have different priorities than lots of other teenagers, but I’m okay with that and I’m ready to embrace this short time I have left before I am an adult who has real worries and responsibilities. I want to stop wishing for a boyfriend, and start praying that God will prepare me to be the best wife. I want to stop procrastinating my homework. I want to make time for the people who are important to me. To show love by action, and not just words. All of these things are possible, and I suggest you think of ways you could better yourself, because it really affects one’s happiness.

Let’s stop asking “what do you want to be when you grow up” and instead, think of all the things we can be now so that when we’re grown up and get asked “what are you?”, we can answer confidently, “happy.”

As always, thank you for sticking with me through my rant if you made it this far. I wish you the best of luck in school, work, or play, whichever it may be for you. Love all. Love Madeline. xoxo

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4 thoughts on “Embracing Yourself (a rant, by Maddie)”

I felt like I was going to be a different person when people asked me about ‘when I grow up’ like there was 2 of me, the child one and the adult one in reality that makes no sense you are you you are when you are born. That question is simply about a career choice, the choice you make for a career at 18years old doesn’t have to be your career forever you clan change it 100 times after that if you want. I think you have your priorities right the most important thing in life is the people you love and who love you back.
I wrote a post recently about making career choices when I was younger too if you want to check it out.

Hey Maddie – I enjoyed your “rant” – got me to thinking about my life and what I want to be. When I look back all these many years, it seems that I don’t even know the teenager I was. What was I thinking? Seems I just moved along to the beat of someone else’s agenda – graduate high school after study, study, study because high grades seem to be the most important thing in the world. Then college – studying, yes, someone else’s agenda again. And on and on through many years. Today I see that my life is an open book – a new adventure everyday and it has nothing to do with someone else’s agenda but what I’m discovering within. It’s so great that you see this already and you are following your own path towards self-discovery.